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This article presents a conceptual synthesis of the international literature on inclusive education while expanding upon, and incorporating, the articles in this special issue. The authors present their 3P model (philosophy, policy and praxis) and relate each paper in this special issue to different aspects of their model.

This article serves as an epilogue to this special issue of the Journal of Educational Administration as well as a discussion of historical and conceptual distinctions between mainstreaming and inclusion while examining global trends in understanding the move toward inclusive education.

The authors examined the detrimental effects of ableism and a medical model of disability and their effects on the educational system. They conducted an analysis based on examining the philosophy, policy and practice of the inclusive movement, specifically by examining conceptual models and inclusive decisions, conceptual frameworks for describing inclusive policy and a focus of the application to educational administration. The authors examined the global movement from segregation/exclusion to integration and then to inclusionary praxis.

The authors maintain that the inclusion literature lacks a sound positivistic empirical base, and so they present throughout the article possible avenues for such research as well as future directions for comparative research.

Understanding the philosophical underpinnings of the inclusive movement is central to developing viable inclusive educational settings. The authors distinguish between inclusive schools and local educational authorities where stakeholders have moved toward an inclusionary system (the minority) versus locales who are reluctant to move systems to actual change.

This article takes a wider view of inclusionary practices, from one focusing on children with disabilities to one focusing on historical and traditional exclusionary practices. By widening the scope of the inclusion discussion, to one of exclusion, the authors present a viably wider lens to educational administration.

This chapter will address four key areas related to resourcing inclusive education. Consideration will be given first to an international perspective on models of funding, reviewing direct or student-based approaches, and decentralized versus local organization of funding. The relationships between funding and implementation of inclusive education will then be explored, looking at ways of measuring these using indicators or protocols. Third, continuous improvement, planning, and accountability will be reviewed for their role in setting priorities, targets, and benchmarking progress while addressing competing resource needs. Finally, approaches to building capacity to support inclusive practice through a range of approaches will be proffered.

This chapter aims to investigate how a range of emerging trends within the international community can be used to build a connective educational ecosystem based on an inclusive and universal process (Biggeri et al., 2017; Ziegler, 2017). The starting question is: how multidisciplinary teams in Italy could take action toward inclusive education?

Partnering is becoming a central system organization strategy for schools to adopt for successful innovative teams with creative educational ideas (Kelly et al., 2002), and here it is declined in the Italian context in which inclusive education was officially embraced in 1977 as a national policy (D'Alessio, 2011). National legislation (104/92 Law) made explicit the mandate that students with disabilities receive their education (to the maximum extent possible) with nondisabled peers in the general education classroom using appropriate supplemental aids and services in the least-restrictive environment (Anastasiou et al., 2015; Canevaro & de Anna, 2010).

It is crucial to encourage new forms of practice which require collaboration capabilities (Hattie, 2015; Vangrieken et al., 2015) between multidisciplinary teams that comprised general teachers, special education teachers, health professionals, school psychologists, school leaders, and the students' family (Meirink et al., 2010). These resources could be distributed across inclusive ecosystems to support all students by enabling them to prosper in an increasingly diversified and complex environment in which creativity, ability to innovate, entrepreneurship, and a commitment to continuous learning are joint and connective (EU, 2008). This creates a state of positive multiagency collaboration that promotes the well-being of students and the system.

Europe is comprised of geographically and politically diverse countries, with different cultures and languages, at different stages in their progress towards achieving inclusive education for diverse ranges of learners. This chapter discusses cross-country collaborative work conducted within the European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education. The work supports countries in meeting commitments to Sustainable Development Goals in Quality Education, by developing and implementing more inclusive education systems. This collaborative approach is based on a shared vision and evidenced-based key principles to guide policy development. It highlights the challenges alongside the progress achieved in European Country contexts towards SDG 4 targets.

The focus of special education around the globe may be to provide specialized instruction to meet unique needs of children to help them achieve their full potential. However, each country around the globe may also have its own unique issues, barriers, legal frames, policies, and practices, as well as a history of its origin and evolution of policies and practices that govern special education in that country. This chapter describes how special education in Spain originated and evolved to its current state. It includes the following chapter sections: origins of special education in Spain; legislative acts; prevalence and incidence of various recognized disability areas; an overview of Spain’s education system including special needs education; current assessment and intervention practices; teacher education practices; family involvement considerations; and future challenges to special education.

Students with special needs in Indonesia can access education in either a special school or an inclusive school. In both systems, there are still many obstacles to ensuring the quality education for students. During the current pandemic crisis, these obstacles are getting worse. Some dramatic changes have been applied to national policies and daily learning practices at schools. Therefore, it is of interest to investigate the current situation of special and inclusive education in Indonesia. The study will be focussed on the ideology about special and inclusive education development, the strength and weaknesses of inclusive and special education programmes, and the strategies or models with which the Indonesian educational system will proceed in a VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity) world.

For teachers to fully enact pedagogy rooted in equity and inclusion, they must have access to purposeful systems and tools supporting proactive and collaborative planning built explicitly to center the needs of those historically denied full access to learning. This chapter takes on the historical injustices that have been perpetuated within public education in the United States since its inception and presents practical tools and systems (rooted in research and refined in the field) that can promote more equitable day-to-day teaching and learning in classrooms.

All countries need to track the implementation of their educational policies and legislation. The justifications and pressures for mapping such developments are very clear at the international level, as can be seen in the 2006 United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) call for data collection and monitoring at State level. They are also apparent at the European level, as outlined in the European Council priorities and targets outlined in the education and training ET 2020 strategy. This chapter will focus on the current situation in European Union member countries. It will attempt to identify the issues that must be addressed by systems of data collection at international and national levels in order to monitor learners’ rights to inclusive education.

Significant progress towards the provision of a more equitable and inclusive education system in Ireland has been made in recent years. National policy initiatives have been supported by the implementation of new assessment and resourcing models and procedures that aim to ensure appropriate support of children described as having special educational needs. A focus upon teacher training and professional development and consideration of education in the post-compulsory years have resulted in changes aimed at improving access and quality of services. This chapter through an interrogation of the research that has influenced changes in national policy and practices, and a scrutiny of associated literature, discusses both the successes achieved towards addressing national inclusive education priorities, and those areas which remain a challenge and in need of further investigation. Building upon a method for reviewing the literature developed by the authors and applied in Ireland as part of a major longitudinal study (Rose, Shevlin, Winter, & O'Raw, 2010) a discussion of the current situation is presented in relation to progress towards the Education for All Goals and key issues for further scrutiny are proposed.